Method of handling strand material



Sept. 22, 1931' F. LAMPLOUGH METHOD OF HANDLING STRAND MATERIAL Filed April 6, 1929 QM, f

Les/fe F/ am/D/ough i Patented Sept. 22, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFicE LESLIE FAWCETT LAMPLOUGH, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO WESTERN ELEC- TRIC COMPANY, INCORPORATED, OE NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK METHOD OF HANDLING STRAND MATERIAL Application led April 6,

stance'and are also being vulcanized or otherwise treated in a closed chamber. In such processes aplurality of wires are moved in parallel relation through an extrusion machine where a common insulating covering is applied to them. and are then passed through Van elongated chamber Where they are subjected to the action of steam or other heating medium to eiiect a heat treatment of the covering. For example, two parallel wires 2o may be simultaneously passed through the extrusion machine whe-re a coating of rubber compound or other insulating material is ap- V plied to them, and then passed, in parallel relation through a closed steam chamber to eilect vulcanizatiou of the rubber, the steam chamber, at the point where the moving wires emerge being provided with a suitable seal to prevent leakage of the steam from the chamer.

An object ot this invention is to provide an improved method for expeditiously handling movingstrands. y

In accordance with the present invention, when a reel becomes exhausted of' wire the apparatus need not be stopped, but the torward end ot the wire from a succeeding reel may be Jfed into the extrusion machine and drawn through the steam chamber and seal, said forward end beingheld in iXed position relative to the other (continuous) wiie by means of a guiding` strand of relatively limp material'attached to said forward end.

The invention will be more fully understood, from the following description taken in connection with the appended drawings,

in which Fig. 1 is a. side elevation, partly in section, diagrammatically illustrating a form of apparatus whereby the invention may be prac` ticed;

1929. Serial No. 353,043.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1; and

. Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of a pair of' conductors provided with a common covering.

In the drawings, the reference numeral 9 designates the insulating head ot an extrusion machine `adapted to apply a common coating of rubber compound or other material 10 to wires 11 and12. The insulating head may be of any suitable construction, the particular form illustrated herein being more fully described in the application of G. L. Cherry, Serial No. 353,042, tiled April 6, 1929. l

The wires 11.and 12 are led to the insulating' head from supply reels 13, 14 and 15, the supply reels being so mounted with respect to the extrusion machine that when one reel becomes exhausted the wire from another reel may be threaded into the machine without removing the exhausted reel. From the extrusion machine, the newly coated wires are passed to a chamber 16, where steam or other heat-ing medium is admitted thereto through an inlet 17, the heating medium being maintained under pressure in the chamber. From the chamber the coated and heat treated wires pass through a substantially steam-tight seal 18, and thence over a capstan 19 to a. take-up reel 20. The capstan 19 is driven, by means not shown, at a predetermined speed which is coordinated with the eX- truding speed of the insulating head 9.

The nseal 18 comprises a threaded cap- 21 which l' olds apertured disks 22, of rubber or other resilient material, against the end of the steam chamber 16. A hollow cylindrical retaining member 25 holds the disks 22 yielding contact with the coated wires 11 and 12 moving therethrough, to prevent leakage 'ot the steam from the chamber. The retaining member 25 is held in position by a bell-crank lever 26 which is yieldingly urged against the vretaining member by means ota piston 27 mounted in a cylinder 28 and actuated by compressed air or other pressure medium admitted'through duct 29.

In the operation of the mechanism'thus far described, two wires are drawn from impart toughness to the rubber.

reels 14 and 15 through the insulating head 9 and steam chamber 16 in parallel relation, passing over capstan 19 to the take-up reel 20, the distance between capstan 19 and reel 20 being sufficiently great to permit the covering to cool and harden. lVhen the wire on any given reel 14 is exhausted, its rear 'end 30 will be drawn through the apparatus and the extrusion machine will thereafter produce a tube or section of insulation 31 having no wire therein and fre-l quently having insuflicient tensile strength to bind the forward end 32 of the wire l2 fromthe next reel 13 to the other (continuous) wire 11 so as to permit the forward end to pass through the steam chamber and the seal 18 without being stripped from wire 11. This ditliculty is accentuated where the wire 12 is springy, in which case the forward end 32 tends to return to the helical shape it had when wound uponthe reel. This tendency causes it to draw away from the other wire 11 and break-the section 31 during the first part of its passage through the chamber 16, when the heat of the steam softens the rubber and vulcanization has not yet progressed sufficiently to The forward end 32 will in such a case be obstruct- .ed by the seal 18, which will strip the wire 12 from Wire 11. n order to prevent such occurrence, therefore, each reel of wire .to be fed tothe apparatus has attached to its vforward end a length of soft wire or other fairly well vulcanized by the time its rear end, attached to lend 32, enters the steam chamber.

In the practice of the methodconstituting this invention, a plurality of wires or other strands are advanced through the apparatus in parallel relation, the insulating head 9 applying a common covering to lthe strands during such advancement. When the wire on any given reel 14 becomes eX- hausted a new strand '12, having attached thereto a length of less rigid strand material 34, is fed into the insulating head 9, following as closely as possible the rear end 30 'of the preceding wire. The length 34 is thereupon drawn through the` apparatus, and its forward end is bound securely 'to the other wire 11 by the time the forward end 32 of the new strand enters the steam chamber. The wires 11 and v1.2 may therefore be passed through the machine and not only to the forward end 32 but also tov the rear end 30. In the finished product, the relative limpness of the length 34 is such that it marks the point at which the new Wire has been introduced, thereby facilitating the later removal of the section 31 and length 34 preparatory to splicing.

While the invention has been described with particular reference to a pair of rubber covered wires and a steam vulcanization process, it will be readily understood that the method, with suitable modications, may be applied in various other relations. The scope' of the invention is therefore to be limited only by the terms of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A method of handling strand material, comprising continuously advancing a pair of strands in parallel relation, applying a common covering to the strands during such advancement, advancing a third strand in longitudinally spaced relation to one of said pair of strands, connecting to the forward end of said third strand a length of strand material of less rigidity than thefthird strand, and connecting said length of strand material to one of said pair of strands by means of the covering material.

2. A method of handling strand material, comprising advancing a strand along a predetermined path, advancing a length of flexible material in parallelism with said strand, applying a common covering of plastic material to the strand and the length, vulcanizing the covering during such advancement to bind the length to the strand, and drawing the forward end of a strand of relatively7 rigid material along said path by means o? the length.

3. A method of handling strand material. comprising continuously advancing a strand along a predetermined path, applying a covering to the strand during such advancement, attaching to one end of a second strand a .length of strand material of less rigidity than the second strand, and connecting the length of strand material to the first strand solely by means of the covering material.

4. A method of handling' strand material, comprising continuously advancing a strand along a predetermined path, applying a covering to the strand during such advancement, attaching to one end of a second strand a length of strand material of less rigidity than the second strand, connecting the length of strand material to the first strand by means of the covering material, and advancing the second strand along the predetermined path by means of the length of strand material.

5. A method of handling strand material,

llt

ycomprising continuously advancing a strand along a predetermined path, applying a covering to the strand during such advancement, attaching to a second strand a length of strand material of less rigiditythan the second strand, connecting the length of strand material to the first strand by means of the covering material, and advancing the length of strand material and thereby the second strand along the predetermined path.

6. A method of handling strand material, comprising' continuously advancing a plurality of strands in parallel relation along a predetermined path, applying a common covering to the strands during such advancement,

connecting to the forward end of a succeeding strand a length of strand material of less rigidity than the succeeding strand, and attaching the length of strand material to one of the first mentioned strands solely by means of the covering material. 7. A method of handling strand material, comprising continuously advancing a pair of strands in parallel relation, applying a common covering to the strands during such advancement, heat treating the applied covering, connecting tothe forward end of a succeeding strand a length of strand material of less rigidity than the succeeding strand,

A attaching the length of strand material to one -of the first mentioned strands by means of' the covering material, and advancing the length of strand material and thereby the succeeding strand along the predetermined path. 8. A method of handling strand material,

comprising advancing a strand along a predetermined path, advancing a length of fiexible material along a path parallel to the path of the strand, applyinga common covering .40 to the strand and the length to bind the length to the strand, and drawing the forward end of a second strand of relatively rigid material long the path of the length by means of the ength. i t

- 9. A method of handling strand material,

comprising advancing a strand along a predetermined path, attaching a length of fiexible material to one end of a second strand, advancing the length along the path in longitudin'ally spaced relation to the first strand, applyimg a common covering to the first strand and the length, and advancing the length and thereby the second strand along the path by means ofthe covering material and the first strand.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name this 26 day of March, A. D. 1929.

- LESLIE FAWCETT LAMPLOUGH. 

